Search

St. Valentine, the patron saint of love, romance, and marriage, was a priest in Rome in the third century, a time in which Emperor Claudius II outlawed marriage for young men stating that single men made better soldiers. Despite that decree, Valentine continued to perform marriages in secret. When his defiance was discovered, he was martyred on February 14.

In the fifth century, Pope Gelasius elevated Valentine to sainthood and declared February 14 to be St. Valentine’s Day.

In the eighteenth century, tokens of affection and handwritten notes were exchanged on St. Valentine’s Day. By the 1900’s, printed cards, some elaborate and trimmed with lace, became popular.

To learn more about unique rosaries, read The Rosary Collector’s Guide by Gloria Brady Hoffner and Helen Hoffner. With over 200 color photographs, The Rosary Collector’s Guideoffers insight on unique rosaries, crosses, crucifixes, and center medals. The Rosary Collector’s Guide is available at Barnes and Noble, Amazon, and religious articles stores.

Share this:

Like this:

A winter snowstorm has hit many parts of the United States. Have you ever experienced a summer snowstorm?

According to legend, a summer snowstorm occurred in Italy in 352 A.D. On the night of August 4, a wealthy couple prayed to Mary, Our Lady, because they wanted a child to make them a family. That night, Mary appeared to them in a dream and instructed them to build a church in her honor on the Esquiline Hill. Mary said that the site for the new church would soon be outlined in snow. On the same night, Mary also appeared to Pope Liberius and announced the coming of a miraculous summer snowfall. When residents awoke on August 5, they found the Esquiline Hill covered in snow. The outline of a church could be seen in the snow. Less than two years later, the Basilica of Saint Mary Major was built on that site. In honor of that summer snowfall, Mary is sometimes referred to as Our Lady of the Snows.

The rosary shown here has clear blue beads and a center medal honoring Our Lady of the Snows. In place of Pater Beads, it has medals honoring additional titles for Mary including Our Lady of Fatima, Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, Our Lady of Lourdes. and Our Lady of Perpetual Help. Rosary makers have created many rosaries to commemorate the miraculous summer snowfall. Some have bubble beads with images of Mary while others have unique pater beads.

To learn more about antique and unique rosaries, read The Rosary Collector’s Guide by Gloria Brady Hoffner and Helen Hoffner. Published by Schiffer Publishing, The Rosary Collector’s Guidehas over 200 color photographs of rosaries including those owned by England’s King Henry VIII, military rosaries of World Wars I and II, and rosaries honoring the events of September 11. The Rosary Collector’s Guide is available in the Catholic Faith Store, Barnes and Noble, Amazon, and other religious article stores, book stores, and online sites.

The Ghirelli Company, founded in 1987, has designed rosaries for the Vatican. Their Christmas Rosary, made in 2002, has a unique Star of David Crucifix.

The Center Medal of the Ghirelli Christmas Rosary shows a manger scene.

A Christmas Rosary can become a family heirloom of the season.

To learn more about unique rosaries, read The Rosary Collector’s Guide by Gloria Brady Hoffner and Helen Hoffner. This 152 page hardcover book has 240 color photographs of rosaries, crosses, crucifixes, and center medals. Published by Schiffer Publishing, the Rosary Collector’s Guide is available on Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, The Catholic Faith Store Online, and other religious article stores and book stores.

On December 19, 2017, Pope Francis issued a decree confirming that the late Father Patrick Peyton lived a life of heroic Christian virtue. The decree moves this American priest one step closer to being declared a saint.

Father Peyton has been called the Rosary Priest because he encouraged families to pray the rosary together. His motto was, “The family that prays together, stays together”. In 1942, he wrote to every bishop in the United States to ask them to promote the family rosary. He also recruited Hollywood stars such as Bing Crosby and Lucille Ball to motivate everyone to pray.

Father Patrick Peyton died in 1992. His life was spent in service to the Catholic Church with special dedication to the rosary.

To learn more about the rosary, read The Rosary Collector’s Guide, by Gloria Brady Hoffner and Helen Hoffner. This 152 page hardcover book published by Schiffer Publishing has over 200 color photographs and information on rosaries ranging from the Boxwood rosary owned by England’s King Henry VIII to rosaries honoring Pope Francis. The Rosary Collector’s Guideis available in Barnes and Noble, Amazon, and other book stores, religious article stores, and online venues.

Many rosaries commemorate the vision known as Our Lady of Guadalupe. According to legend, on a winter day in 1531, Juan Diego, a member of the Aztec tribe who had recently converted to Catholicism, was walking in the hills of the Tepeyac Desert near Mexico City. He had a vision of a lady who asked him to tell the local bishop to build a church on that site. Juan made the request to Bishop Juan deZumarrage but the bishop wanted proof of the vision.

Juan went back to the scene of the vision and once again saw the lady. When Juan asked the lady to give some proof of her appearance, she told him to climb to the top of the hill and pick some flowers for the bishop. Although it was winter, Juan found Castillian roses growing on the desert hill. Castillian roses never grew in that area. Juan scooped the flowers into his cloak and went to find the bishop. When he arrived at the bishop’s home, the flowers fell from his cloak and formed the image of the lady. That cloak is now displayed in the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Juan Diego Cuahtlatoatzin was made a saint in 2002. The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe is celebrated every year on December 12.

The rosary shown has a Stanhope Cross. The term Stanhope is given to crosses and crucifixes which have a peephole. The peephole has a small lens with a magnifying glass through which images of holy places or saints can be seen. This cross has an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe hidden inside.

The pendant of this rosary ( the first Our Father bead, three Hail Mary beads, and second Our Father bead) spell the name Maria (Mary).

The center medal has an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

The reverse of the center medal shows the roses found by Juan Diego.

The Our Father beads have images of the vision of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Many materials have been used to create rosaries honoring Our Lady of Guadalupe. The rosary shown above was made in Italy and has beads of Murano Glass.

The center medal of the Murano Glass rosary has an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

To learn more about unusual rosaries, crosses, crucifixes, and center medals, read The Rosary Collector’s Guide by Gloria Brady Hoffner and Helen Hoffner, This 152 page hardcover reference book has 240 color photographs and helps historians, antique dealers, and rosary collectors identify unique religious articles. The Rosary Collector’s Guide is available on Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble.com, the Catholic Faith Store Online, and other book stores, religious article stores, and online suppliers.

Helen Hoffner and Gloria Brady Hoffner, authors of The Rosary Collector’s Guide, are often able to bring their rosary collection to show to church groups, school groups, and community organizations. If you would like to arrange a presentation in New Jersey, Delaware, New York, or Pennsylvania or if you have a question about rosaries, contact the authors at rosarycollector@aol.com

Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, who passed away on December 9, 1979, was declared Venerable by Pope Benedict XVI in 2012. His work and his writings show that he led a life worthy to be canonized someday.

Rosary collectors value the World Mission Rosary, developed by Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen in 1951. From 1930 to 1968, Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen had radio and television programs that explained the Catholic faith. He was also the director of the mission society.

To raise money for the missions, Fulton J. Sheen created a rosary in 1951 and advertised it to his radio and television audience. Each decade had beads of a different color to represent parts of the world. Yellow stood for Asia, land of the rising sun. Red represented the Americas, the fire of immigrants exploring new lands. White symbolized Europe, home of the Vatican. Blue was used for the waters of Oceania. Green symbolized Africa’s rich jungles.

The World Mission Rosary has been copied but Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen made the original.

To learn more about antique and unusual rosaries, read The Rosary Collector’s Guide by Gloria Brady Hoffner and Helen Hoffner. Published by Schiffer Publishing, The Rosary Collector’s Guide has over 200 color photographs of rosaries, crosses, crucifixes, and center medals ranging from the Boxwood rosary owned by England’s King Henry VIII to rosaries honoring Pope Francis. The Rosary Collector’s Guide is available at Barnes and Nobles, the Catholic Faith Store, Amazon, and other religious articles stores, book stores, and online vendors.